


The thing about young love

by huffletiika



Category: A Song of Ice and Fire - George R. R. Martin, Game of Thrones (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Consensual Underage Sex, Davos POV, F/M, Friends to Lovers, Implied/Referenced Underage Sex, No Smut, this is a gendrya story from other person's pov
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-30
Updated: 2020-09-30
Packaged: 2021-03-07 16:15:30
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,996
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26730490
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/huffletiika/pseuds/huffletiika
Summary: ‘I must be mistaken’ he thought, considering that perhaps that sound had come from Devan's room, who frequently brought his girlfriend to spend the night without his beloved wife noticing, and not Gendry’s. But, he was quickly contradicted when the female voice that he had just heard cast unmistakable sounds of pleasure, now repeated quite clearly the name of his foster son.Well, this he did not expect.
Relationships: Arya Stark/Gendry Waters, Davos Seaworth & Gendry Waters, Davos Seaworth/Marya Seaworth
Comments: 46
Kudos: 237





	The thing about young love

**Author's Note:**

> Ok, so this story was born from this twitter thread: https://www.boredpanda.com/dad-tweets-stepson-girlfriend-sleepover-escape/?utm_source=google&utm_medium=organic&utm_campaign=organic 
> 
> And, I messed up a bit with the ages so:
> 
> Arya: 16  
> Gendry: 17  
> Devan: 17  
> Stan: 15  
> Steffon: 11
> 
> Thank you Weltverbessererin for being my beta in this.

Waking up before the sunrise has never been an issue for Davos. He’s an early bird, as his wife is used to calling him, an old habit from the years he was part of the crew on a cargo ship that the ten years he has been retired have not been able to take away from him, and that allow him some kind of time for himself before his wife, his seven children, and his foster son wake up and need him somehow. Although, his four eldest have already left home, and are currently studying their respective careers in the Stormlands.

Davos has a routine for his mornings. He would first go to the bathroom (he doesn’t have to explain what he does there, does he?), and then downstairs to the kitchen, where he would run the coffee maker before going to the front door to pick up the newspaper that the delivery boy would have left there just a few minutes earlier.

Then, with his newspaper and cup of coffee in hand, he would usually sit in his favorite chair in the living room, where he would read the latest news from Westeros and solve the crosswords and Sudoku puzzles of the day, until his beloved Marya would eventually wake up, and together they would break their fast while their children woke up.

However, that day his routine was surprisingly interrupted when, as he headed downstairs to the kitchen and passed the door leading to the attic, where his foster son has arranged his room after Matthos had gone to university and left this space available, and heard a very unmistakable sound that almost made him trip and fall flat on the ground.

‘ _I must be mistaken’_ he thought, considering that perhaps that sound had come from Devan's room, who frequently brought his girlfriend to spend the night without his beloved wife noticing, and not Gendry’s. But, he was quickly contradicted when the female voice that he had just heard cast unmistakable sounds of pleasure, now repeated quite clearly the name of his foster son.

Well, this he did not expect.

Gendry’s a very peculiar lad, Davos had to admit. He was usually reserved and quiet, maintaining a scowling look 95% of the time, and keeping conversations to the minimum. His social activities were rather limited despite being on the football team, which he only joined because the coach had told him that he was good enough to get a scholarship to study at a good university. And, if it wasn’t for the Stark girl, the rather chubby boy with the funny name, and the thin blond boy who usually had ink stains on his hands, Davos would have thought he didn’t have any friends at all.

So, hearing him having _those_ kinds of activities in his bedroom with a random girl seemed highly odd, especially since he was sure the boy was more than besotted with the aforementioned Stark girl who, according to his observations, seemed to correspond to the sentiment.

What a shame.

Davos continued on his way, feeling that he had already intruded too much on the boy's privacy, and when he reached the kitchen he turned the coffee pot on as usual, although he was too caught up in his thoughts to remember to go out to get the newspaper.

It was not unusual in his home for a girl to spend the night. With seven sons (eight, including Gendry), Davos had already accepted that this was something that would happen at some point, and had taken it upon himself to talk to each of them who were old enough about important aspects such as using protection and always making sure that there was consent. Dale’s wife had been his girlfriend for most of his senior year and, like Devan, he had brought the girl home for the night on several occasions. Allard, on the other hand, seemed to have been making the most of his later high school years, as he had caught a glimpse of more than one young female leaving his room at dawn, and Matthos and Maric weren’t saints either.

But Gendry… before that morning he would have assured that he knew the lad, as he was more than sure that he wouldn’t be bringing girls to their place, but he was obviously wrong. And, don’t get him wrong, this didn’t change a thing about how highly he thought of him, or about how much he loves the lad as if he was his flesh and blood. It’s just… he really thought he was going to wait until it was meaningful, this considering the circumstances of his own birth.

He got to the boy because of his former boss, Stannis Baratheon, who is actually Gendry’s uncle. Gendry’s father, Robert, was well known for heavily drinking every day and sleeping around with every attractive woman who crossed his path, so it had been highly presumed that he had left many children scattered throughout the continent.

They don’t know how he and Gendry's mother met, but it is presumed that it happened in one of his many party nights in Flea Bottom, since the boy comes from there.

It was during one of Stannis's many reviews of Robert's documents after the man’s death that he found a letter from a woman named Elena Waters, of which he had not heard about before. This one was still sealed, and it seemed to be a good amount of years old because of the coloring of the paper, so he opened it just out of curiosity, finding a request for help from a desperate woman who had been diagnosed with cancer, and who feared for the future of her son (who was also Robert’s son, according to the letter) in case she passed away.

Stannis immediately searched for information about the woman, learning that she had died a couple of years earlier, and that her son had been put into foster care. He requested him to go meet the boy, to find out if the boy knew the truth about his origin, and in case he did, offer him a considerable amount of money so that he would not go to the media and muddy the Baratheon name more than it already was.

At that time Davos had risen in the shipping company, going from being a simple sailor to the right hand of the owner of the company (which was ironic, since he had lost some phalanxes of said hand in an accident at sea), so he didn’t hesitate to go to comply with the received orders. But after meeting the suspicious and sullen thirteen-year-old boy, whose dark hair and blue eyes were obvious Baratheon traits (his Flea Bottom accent so close to his own), and learning his heartbreaking story, he simply couldn't offend him by offering him money for his silence.

Besides, the boy knew who his father was, his mother had confessed it to him before her passing, but had no intention of asking anything of his biological family. His words weren't exactly those, actually, but Davos wouldn't repeat what the boy had said about what his father’s family could do with their money in case that was the reason for their first meeting, not even in his head.

Davos spent the night after meeting the boy without sleep, for he had noticed a lot of himself in him, and he wanted to do something to give the boy a better life. The social worker had informed him that another foster home would be sought for the boy soon, since the current ones did not wish to continue fostering him because he was ‘ _too surly and temperamental’_ , so after talking with his wife and children, he had decided to carry out the necessary paperwork so that they would give him custody of the boy.

He had been part of his family since.

“Morning, my love,” Marya greeted him as she walked down the stairs, the green silky dressing gown that their eldest had given her last Christmas highlighting her beautiful eyes, and her brown hair braided at her back. “How strange not to find you sitting in your chair and with the newspaper in hand,” she walked up to stand next to him, placing a chaste kiss on his cheek.

‘ _The newspaper!_ ’ Davos suddenly remembered, and with an apologetic smile he stepped away from his wife's side, and walked to the front door.

“Would you believe me if I told you that I’m trying to change my routine?” he asked his wife as he opened the door, bending down to pick up the newspaper that rested on his carpet.

“Not a bit,” she replied with a chuckle. “I would believe first if they told me that Allard is in a stable relationship, or that Devan has decided to become a monk.”

Davos let out a laugh.

“I was just distracted,” he confessed, still standing in the doorway, and absently reading the title of the news that occupied the first page.

“And what distracted you my love?” Marya questioned him from the kitchen, her attention completely focused on cooking their breakfast.

“I was just thinking about how grown our children are,” he replied, and noticed that one of those said children had left his umbrella lying on the door landing, so he picked it up and went to hang it in the coat closet, immediately noticing the unusual piece of clothing hanging there.

Oh.

It was a girl's jacket, too neat to belong to any of his boys, and on the back, was clearly written the last name Stark, along with the embroidery of a perfect Direwolf head.

_Oh!_

Was the Stark girl the one in the lad’s room? He asked to himself, his gaze immediately heading to the stairs, wishing there was some way to confirm his suspicions. He knew he was being nosey, a very unusual feature for him, but those had been so many months of watching them both orbit around each other without daring to confess their feelings, that he was curious to know if they had finally done it. And, if so, how they had come to it, because the boy was not very good at expressing his feelings, and the girl seemed completely unaware of the obvious smitten looks he had been throwing at her.

“All good over there, my love?” he heard his wife ask him, so he closed the closet door and started walking back to the kitchen.

“All perfect,” he replied, kissing her shoulder as he went to retrieve a mug from the cupboard.

\---

By the time he was finishing his breakfast, his other three children had appeared at the table, all bringing with them different levels of numbness so Davos wondered if they had heard what had happened in the attic that early morning.

“This is weird,” his wife observed, glancing at the stairs.

“What’s weird?” Davos questioned, following her gaze.

“Gendry hasn't come down for breakfast,” Marya frowned with concern. “He is usually the first of our children to come down, isn’t he? Especially on Sundays,” she concluded, looking at the clock hanging in the kitchen, above the oven.

She was right, Gendry usually used Sundays to work on the motorcycle that he had bought second-hand from the owner of the auto shop where he had worked during the summer holidays, so he got up early to make the most of the day.

“Maybe he is sick of his tummy,” their youngest told her, as he put his chocolate milk back on the table. “Heard a lot of grunting and moaning coming from his room last night,” he continued, his young age making him ignorant of what was really going on in the attic.

_Since last night?_

Davos was impressed.

“No, there wasn’t!” Stan intervened, surely trying to cover his favorite brother’s shenanigans.

“You might be mistaken, Steffon,” Devan added, looking nervous. “Maybe you got confused by the noises from the street, or it could just have been the wind.”

“I’m no- ouch!” Steffon’s remark was interrupted by what Davos was sure had been a kick under the table from one of his older brothers. His money was on Stan. “Mom, Stanny kicked me!” he complained.

Called it.

“I did no such thing,” his sixth son said, before innocently sipping from his mug.

“Yes, you did!”

“No, he didn’t,” Devan interjected, and Davos had to hold his laugh. “Why don’t you finish your breakfast, little one? I’m pretty sure Gendry’s fine.”

“But–”

“I agree with your brothers, kiddo,” he decided to intervene to avoid a bloodshed to happen on his beloved table. “If Gendry was feeling poorly he would have told us by now, wouldn’t he? Maybe he just stayed up late last night watching a movie and is still asleep, the seven know how much he deserves a day off.”

The other two boys nodded energetically.

Marya still looked worried.

“Maybe I could go to his bedroom and ask him if he’s doing fine,” she said, and Devan and Stan got on their feet.

“It’s OK, mum. I can go,” said Devan.

“I’ll go!” Stan spoke at the same time.

“You haven’t finished your food,” Marya went to stand, so Davos rushed to do it before she could, giving her a reassuring smile.

“Don't worry, darling, I'm going,” he said, noticing the worried looks his boys gave to each other, surely thinking that he would catch their poor brother in the act. If only they knew what he heard earlier. “Although, I am sure I will only interrupt his sleep.”

His wife nodded, and he headed up to their rooms.

When he was on the last steps before reaching the second floor, he noticed a very well-known petite brunette who was wearing a shirt that he knew belonged to his foster son and appeared to be tiptoeing from the bathroom to the door leading to the attic stairs, trying to make as little sound as possible. Davos smiled after having his suspicions confirmed, and waited a few seconds until the girl came through the door and closed it behind her before continuing to ascend.

Apparently, the boy had well calculated the time that he and Marya had their breakfast, and had shared this information with his guest so she could take a trip to the bathroom.

Smart kid.

He walked to the door and waited for a few seconds. What should he do? Knock and ask if he was fine? Yeah, he thought with a nod, that seemed like the best approach, so he brought his knuckles to the wood and tapped it a couple of times.

“Yeah?” the answer came almost a minute later, when he was considering knocking on the door again.

“S’ everything fine over there, lad? We’re worried you haven’t come down for breakfast, and Steffon thinks you’re sick,” he asked, pretending not to know the current situation he was in. “It’s a bit late.”

Gendry took some seconds to answer.

“Yes, I’m fine. Not sick. I… I just overslept,” he explained, a little out of breath, so Davos’ eyebrows arched. They weren’t going at it right now, were they? That would be a little bit too awkward for him.

“Good, I will let Marya and the boys know you’re OK,” he responded, wanting not to stay around another minute, in case he was interrupting something.

\---

It wasn’t until half past nine that they knew anything else about Gendry, as the lad came down the stairs dressed in black sweatpants, sporting a gray v-line t-shirt with the logo of the Flea Bottom FC, and the perkiest smile he had ever seen on his face which was almost impossible to ignore.

“Someone’s in a good mood this morning,” Marya commented after receiving a kiss on the cheek from the boy, who immediately started to retrieve a lot of food from the fridge and the cupboard. “And very hungry,” she added, noticing that he had collected a good amount of food.

Davos thought he heard Devan mutter something, but all he managed to grasp were the words last and night.

“Yeah, I–” he seemed like he was having a hard time making up a good excuse for the pillage to the kitchen, so Davos decided to intervene.

“These young people, their stomachs seem to be a bottomless pit,” he said, and his wife laughed while drying her hands on her apron.

“Yeah, you’re right,” she said, and then noticed that Gendry was heading back upstairs. “Are you bringing all that to your room? Though you were going to join us.” The boy made a face. “Ok, fine… but don’t forget to bring all the containers down later, and I don't want a single crumb left there, you guys are always leaving a mess in your bedrooms and I’m the one to clean it.”

“I don’t,” Stan said, and Devan laughed.

“You’re the messiest in this family,” he said, causing everyone to laugh.

“I promise to bring everything back down to the kitchen when I'm done,” Gendry finally said, the very pleased smile that wasn’t usual on his lips still plastered there. “And that there won’t be crumbs anywhere in my room,” he continued before heading back upstairs, his footsteps stopped being heard when he closed the door of his room.

His wife’s gaze was still on the stairs.

“That’s the happiest I’ve ever seen him,” she said, notoriously moved.

Davos smiled at her. The day he brought Gendry to their home she had wrapped the sullen young boy in a tight hug that startled him, as he didn’t seem to be used to them, and told him that she did not intend to replace the memory of his mother, but that she would love him as if he were another of her children, and Davos could see that she was keeping every word of that promise, being aware of things like current change of mood.

“Me too,” he replied, with a nod.

“What do you think has happened to him?” she continued speaking, still staring at the ladder. “Could it be that he finally told Arya that he likes her? I saw her with him last night watching a movie, and I think she left late.”

Stan choked.

“What did I tell you about chewing properly?” Marya scolded him, and Davos laughed as he saw Devan patting his brother’s back.

After that interaction, Davos busied himself in doing all the things he usually did on Sundays, like finishing his puzzles and checking how his organic onion crops were doing, asking himself how the lad would smuggle his female companion out now that the whole family was awake and moving around the house, taking into account that Sundays were the day in which his beloved Marya devoted herself body and soul to cleaning and organizing every corner of their humble home, and it wouldn't be long before she would be heading to check out the attic.

His question was answered not long after as, when he went to the kitchen to get a cup of tea and some cookies that his older son had specifically told him not to eat because they belonged to him (don’t judge him, they had chocolate chips), he heard a female voice swear outside, and as it was his house and so he HAD to know everything that happened there, he peeked through the sliding door with his teacup in hand, noticing the small figure that was trying to climb down the great oak tree that stood at the side of his home, and whose highest branches reached the attic window.

He was so impressed by the girl's bravery and agility that he waited for her to land on solid ground before making his presence known.

“Morning, Miss Stark,” he spoke, making her jump out of her skin. A soft chuckle escaped from his lips as she looked at him like a deer caught in the headlights, her huge gray eyes too expressive to hide her surprise and anguish at being caught. “You shouldn’t have used the tree, it’s dangerous. Besides, I’m pretty sure my wife is doing laundry in the basement, and my youngest must be locked in his room immersed in his online video games… we won’t see him again until lunch.”

“And, how about the rest?”

He grinned. “My other two sons and myself were well aware of you staying last night, miss Stark,” he replied, and heard her swear under her breath.

“Stupid bull,” she groaned. “I told him he couldn’t be subtle–”

“Oh, he was subtle,” Davos interjected, a little ashamed for what he would say next. “but we are not deaf,” he said, and noticed the girl's face turn completely crimson

“I– I’m very… oh, for the old gods! I’m very sorry,” she apologized, mentioning the gods of the north. “We didn’t, I– I just came last night to watch a movie and it happened, we didn’t intend to–,” she shook her head. “Please, don’t be mad at Gendry, it was all my fault… he didn’t intend to disrespect your home, he cares deeply about the opportunity you’re giving him by letting him live with you, we just got carried away, I didn’t know he felt the same for me and–”

Davos was not a cruel person to allow her to continue with that jittery verbiage, so he interrupted her again.

“I know, lass,” he spoke, with a soft smile. “I’m not mad… any of us, I’m actually glad the boy got the courage to tell you how he felt. Don’t tell him I told you this, but it was almost entertaining the way the boy seemed to want to suppress his heart eyes every time you were around.”

“I never noticed–” she sighed, without finishing her words.

“Guess you were too busy trying to suppress your own,” he nodded. He had also noticed the look in the girl’s eyes when she looked at Gendry, and knew there was something _more_ there, he just didn’t want to meddle in the lad's affairs. “And, about him disrespecting _my_ home… he didn’t, and this is _his_ home as well,” he smiled, and the girl did too.

“That–” Arya bit her lower lip. “I’m glad Gendry has you,” she finally said, and Davos felt his own smile grow.

“I’m glad we have him as well,” he said, and then sighed and gestured into his house. “Come on, it’s better if you use the front door to leave, a guest at my house won’t be jumping the fence.”

He walked inside the house without waiting for an answer, and smiled when he heard her light steps following him. It didn't take them long to get to the living room, and before she could open the front door he went to the closet and retrieved the jacket that gave her away for him, handing it to her. She looked at it for a whole minute before taking it, as if she had forgotten its whole existence.

It was at that moment that Marya climbed the stairs from the basement, and they both froze.

“I think we need more detergent, lo–” she smiled when she noticed Arya standing next to him. “Oh, Arya! What a nice surprise! Did Gendry invite you for lunch? I can't believe he didn't tell me.”

“No, I–” she seemed to have run out of excuses, so Davos intervened.

“Don't worry, my love, Miss Stark just came to pick up her jacket,” he pointed to the piece of clothing still in the girl's hand. “She forgot it last night.”

He could see the surprise on her face.

“And, you left at night without wearing a jacket? Poor girl, you must have been freezing!” Davos chuckled, and his wife frowned at him. “Don’t laugh, she could have caught a cold or something. I can’t believe Gendry let her leave like–”

“I was wearing one of his hoodies,” Miss Stark cut in. “I put it on while watching the movie, and then just forgot that it wasn’t what I was wearing when I came in,” she lied, and if Davos didn’t know the truth he would actually believe her. She was so convincing he felt sorry for the girl's parents.

Marya laughed.

“Oh, I see,” she nodded. “Well, now that you’re here, would you like to stay for lunch? Gendry would be very pleased, he’s in a very good mood today! You staying would make him even happier.”

Arya sighed, and looked at the door, then back to his wife. “I wish I could,” she said, biting her lower lip. “But, I promised mum I would have lunch at home, and I’m afraid she would kill me if I’m not there… and I really don’t want my dad to suffer because his wife killed his daughter,” she explained, and Davos couldn’t help but chuckle.

“It’s okay, dear,” Marya spoke, with a soft smile that he had always adored to see on her lips. “You can come to lunch with us another day,” she gave the girl a hug.

The girl seemed surprised by the gesture, but didn’t pull away.

“Y-yeah, of course,” she replied, still startled. “I… have to leave, erm–”

“I’ll let Gendry know you passed by,” Davos told her, so his wife wouldn’t offer to call their son so he could greet his _friend_ , saving them the awkward moment. “I think I saw him getting into the bathroom,” that was his second lie to his wife, and he hated to do such a thing, but the girl's relieved smile made it worth.

“Oh, it’s alright,” she said, feigning disappointment. “I’ll see him another day,” she smiled, and left after saying goodbye.

His wife smiled at him. “She’s so nice,” she said, closing the door. “Do you think she and Gendry… you know.”

“I know what?” he asked, not wanting to give too much away in case the lad wanted to keep it for himself for a while.

“Do you think they are together? Like,” she glanced at the stairs, as if she expected Gendry to appear there and catch them talking about him. “Boyfriend and girlfriend? He was so happy earlier, and she seemed happy too.”

“Maybe…” he replied,

Gendry was actually taking a shower when he went upstairs, so he doesn’t feel like he lied to his wife about that exact fact.

“Arya told me you know about last night,” his foster son’s voice took him out of his thoughts as he tried to solve the sudoku puzzle he had left undone that morning, so he looked away from the newspaper and fixed his gaze on the young man, who at that moment was closing the door of his office behind him and walking towards his desk. “I’m sorry,” he said, and Davos smiled.

“What for?” he asked, putting the newspaper on the desk and motioning for the boy to take a seat.

“This is your home, and I–”

“This is _our_ home,” Davos cut in, correcting his choice of words. “It is as yours as mine, or as of any of my other children,” he continued, with a warm smile. He knew the kid had had it so bad in his past foster homes he just couldn’t get himself to believe he was part of a family now, and that everything they had belonged to him as well.

He seemed taken aback for a while, then cleared his throat.

“Still–” he continued, rubbing the back of his neck. “I shouldn’t have, it was improper… we just got caught up, after I told her what I felt she kissed me, and I–“

“Details are not necessary, lad,” he said, dismissing the rest of the tale about what had happened the night before… and that morning. He thought the boy had had enough with the ‘subtle’ teasing of which he had been a victim during lunch, as Devan and Stan thought that it was an opportunity that they could not miss. “You know what the only two things that I care to know if you remembered last night are,” he continued, and Gendry nodded.

 _Consent and protection_ , that’s all that matters.

“It was her who… proposed it, actually,” he confessed, turning crimson. “And I–” he coughed. “Matthos left some _things_ in my drawers before heading back to his college last month, _just in case_.”

Davos chuckled.

Of course he did.

“So,” Gendry continued, now looking less ashamed. “You’re not mad?” he questioned, and Davos shook his head.

“Does Miss Stark and what happened last night make you happy?” he asked instead of answering, and after a surprised glare Gendry nodded enthusiastically, the huge smile appearing on his face again. “Then there’s no way I could be mad at you because of that… just, tell her not to climb down trees again, I don’t want the girl getting hurt for such thing as hiding from us, and I’m sure Marya wouldn’t mind her joining us for breakfast every now and then,” he concluded, and took the newspaper in his hands again. This meant it was not necessary for them to delve further into the subject, that he was happy for him and therefore did not require further explanations on his part.

Gendry smiled, grateful that he didn't have to talk more about it with him, apparently, and after telling him that he was going to let him finish his puzzles he left his office, bringing out his good humor by humming a song as he did so.

Oh, young love, he thought. He was glad that one more of his children had managed to experience that wonderful thing.

And, speaking of love, he must remember to buy some roses for his beloved Marya the following Thursday, since that day would be their anniversary... and take her to dinner, that would be a good idea as well, she likes that Braavosi restaurant that was just a few blocks from home.


End file.
